Man’s favor to homeless ex-wife leads to murder

A Port Arthur woman has been charged with murdering her ex-husband after he allowed her to move in when she was homeless.

Gayle Annette Waller, 52, was indicted by a Jefferson County grand jury Jan. 30 for murder, a first-degree felony.

According to a probable cause affidavit obtained by The Examiner, on Oct. 26, 2013, police responded to 2860 Manning in Port Arthur to find the body of Daniel Lee DuBois, who was wrapped up in a blanket and left in a back room of the home where his brother later discovered him about a week after his death.

Upon investigation, police caught up to Waller, who voluntarily came to the Port Arthur police station to give a statement. According to the affidavit, Waller waived her right for an attorney to be present during questioning and she admitted to stabbing DuBois — her ex-husband — with a 10-inch kitchen knife.

According to a felony investigative summary obtained by The Examiner, Waller had moved in to DuBois’ home “since she was temporarily homeless.”

“She said it started the day before when the victim began to belittle her and treat her without respect,” the affidavit said.

But when Waller picked up the home’s landline to make a phone call, the affidavit said the quarrel turned deadly.

Waller told police it was then that DuBois “grabbed her by the arms and also struck her with an unknown object in the lower abdomen,” according to the affidavit, at which point Waller admitted to stabbing DuBois twice in the chest.

In the affidavit, Waller told police after DuBois fell back onto the couch, she used a red blanket nearby to cover DuBois where he was left for at least two days before Waller returned to use the blanket to drag DuBois to a back room where she again left his body.

“Immediately after stabbing the victim and during the entire week he lay dead in the house, the accused made no attempt to call the police or seek medical attention,” the affidavit said.

Waller also admitted to taking DuBois’ vehicle to a church parking lot down the street before taking his cell phone and car keys and discarding them along Interstate Highway 73 westbound, just past the Winnie exit, according to the affidavit.

The white plastic grocery bag containing DuBois’ cell phone and keys were located by police, who also confirmed Waller’s account of the stabbing using physical evidence at the scene of the murder.

Waller was arrested Nov. 3, 2013, and booked into the Jefferson County Jail on a $200,000 bond.

She is set to appear in Judge John Stevens’ Criminal District Court on March 10.

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